The County proposed the agreement, which would give the county Board of Commissioners control of the fairgrounds as well as non-fair events, in January. That would leave the appointed, seven-member fair board in charge of planning the fair only.

In a statement, Tom Black, the vice president of the fair boosters, said, "The story line here is that the people of Washington County, who have sponsored the annual fair for over 156 years ... are losing control of their citizen-based representation."